Matt Halfhill's Top 10 Sneakers of the Summer

By now, Matt Halfhill needs no introduction. Not only is the site he founded, Nicekicks.com, the No. 1 source for sneakers news on the daily, but the Nice Kicks shop he owns in Austin, Texas has become the go-to spot to cop sneakers the state has never been able to get. Continuing in our feature this week of industry leaders counting down their Top 10 Sneakers of the summer (check Ronnie Fieg's here), we hit up Halfhill to give us his list. Click through to check what sneakers made the blogging boy wonder’s best of the season…

Matt says: Nike answered the requests of many with the bringback of the Air Trainer SC II, but no original colors were on the books or in the catalogs. Nike did the shoe justice with a QS release in OG colors that were spot-on with the pairs Bo Jackson had. Griffeys, Deions, Nomos, and Bo Jacksons — Nike Training retros are on fire as of late.

Matt says: Reebok continues to ride a gigantic wave of momentum that Zig started for them in 2010. What success that initially started in performance and sport has crossed over into the lifestyle market. Zig, John Wall signing, and RealFlex are all strong plays in their respective categories, but teaming up with Swizz Beatz for the Kamikaze III brought Reebok back into the casual sneaker conversation for the first time in quite a while. Now if only we can get the Kamikaze II, Blast, and Shaqnosis...

Matt says: What we would later learn to be the second-to-last shoe Ronnie Fieg would drop at David Z before opening his own shop, the "Ultra Marine" GT-II brought a great shoe to the line that Ronnie has pumped out over the past few years that wasn't a Gel Lyte III. Fingers crossed we see this silhouette get more treatments like this one in the future.

Matt says: There are so many things that have been done and so many things that can be done with the Air Force 1. This AF1 definitely takes a page from the latter with an embossed black leather upper, small hits of color up top, and finished off with a gum bottom. Nike Sportswear displays once again that their icon born from the streets has a firm connect with music popping on the streets, no matter the language or locale.

Matt says: I passed on these this time around ONLY because I doubled up in 2009. Wish I could have copped at the $150 price tho...

Matt says: Nike had us all fooled thinking they created the greatest head-turning lowtop LeBrons with the "Sprites" and "Solar Reds", but the "Miami Nights" took the low to new heights. They first dropped overseas in China and exclusively in Miami — and, If history repeats itself, we should see these in a couple weeks like the South Beaches. But be prepared to pay stupid prices if you aren't snatching them on release date.

Matt says: Without question one of the most overlooked shoes this summer. The EQT Support was a comfortable classic that truly changed the game for adidas. So often we get teased seeing this shoe drop only in Europe and, with how weak the US dollar has been lately, they have been a no-can-do for US heads.

Matt says: Grey is without question one of my personal favorite colors and a popular one around the Nice Kicks office (see @geokthree's #todayskicks). What made this sneaker one of my favorites of the summer was the quality and unique texture of the materials. Clear bottom and a light grey had their shine last December, but between the "Cool Greys" and these, I'm taking the "Wolfs".

Matt says: Ray Allen was already Hall of Fame status, but getting himself inked in the books as the top behind-the-arc sharpshooter is something only one man can brag about. Jordan Brand came correct with this drop, putting out a very limited number in Boston and a pinch of pairs in Miami.

Matt says: Really? How do I start, where do I start, how can I possibly give this shoe the proper introduction it deserves. Past the fabric and rubber (and some electronics), the way Nike brought this out, introduced it to the world, and announced that all the money would be going to the Michael J Fox Foundation makes this shoe the biggest and best to me for the past couple of decades — yeah, I said that.